Magazine publishers finally had some good news to report in the second quarter — ad pages and revenue increased for the first time since 2007.

Admittedly, it was a tiny gain in ad pages — just 0.8 percent, according to figures released yesterday by the Publishers Information Bureau. Although automotive drove the increase, other categories hard hit by the recession, including financial and real estate, also rebounded.

Ad revenues were said to be up 5.7 percent, to $5.2 billion, although most industry experts regard that number as somewhat inflated because it is based on a one-time ad page rate and not the frequency discounts that all magazines offer to advertisers running multi-page ads.

In terms of real revenue, experts believe the PIB’s dollar figure could be as much as double what the real dollar revenue figure is on the company’s books.

Still, Nina Link, the president and CEO of the Magazine Publishers of America, is cautiously optimistic.

Earlier this year, the ad slump was so severe that only a handful of magazines in 2009 actually showed ad page increases and many of the titles on Adweek’s annual “Hot List” actually had ad page declines.

In the second quarter, however, at least 20 magazines had ad page increases of more than 30 percent. They include titles across a wide array of categories: Vanity Fair, up 30.3 percent to 311.44; the Atlantic, up 35 percent to 142.62; and ESPN Magazine, up 42.9 percent to 372.21. Even long suffering Money is up 32.3 percent to 164.77.

Overall, there were 135 magazines showing ad page increases in the quarter, a big change from 2009, when the entire industry boasted fewer than a dozen increases.

There is no denying that there is a systemic change in the way advertisers are buying ad space, and many experts still think print is in for a tough time over the long haul. But there are early indications that September will be up for the fashion magazines, and some are hoping it carries through to a good fourth quarter for the entire industry.

“There are a lot of earnings reports due out this week, and I think that will set the tone for how they spend on advertising for the rest of the year,” said one industry insider.